“I am happy because the exceptional attitude and determination of this group of players has been rewarded,” the Frenchman said.

“They continued to believe when we were seven points behind Tottenham in mid-March. We had no room for error anymore and you could never see any sign of giving in.

“That’s why the exceptional mental attitude of the players has been rewarded.”

However, Wenger warned his players that the job is not yet complete, with a potentially tricky qualifier to come before they can install themselves alongside the continent’s elite.

He said: “It means to us to be able to play with the top teams in Europe - that’s what you want.

“It means as well that it’s easier to bring in players when you have a chance to be in the Champions League – let’s not forget, we are not in yet, we have to qualify and that is always a very tricky round for us.

“But at least we have a chance.”

Newcastle boss Alan Pardew promised the Magpies will be better next season after a demoralising 2012/13 campaign.

Pardew’s men finished in 16th place on just 41 points – 24 fewer than they managed last season, when they finished in fifth.

Despite the disappointment at a year of under-achievement, the bulk of a crowd of 52,354 stayed behind to acknowledge the applause of the players and to pay tribute to keeper Steve Harper as his 20-year career on Tyneside drew to a close.

Pardew said: “The importance of the fans here, I wanted to highlight today because they have been magnificent for us and the support we had today on the season we have had was just remarkable, really.

“Harps touched on that as well. In the 20 years he has been here, it’s just unbelievable support. We are very, very lucky and the players should feel very lucky to have the support we have got.

“Therefore, we owe them a debt next year to make sure we serve up a better standard of football and better quality results.”